I know the Cayman is in another class, but which one would you prefer (including its costs) for your intended purpose?

We picked up an old Miata for duties that we want to retire our M from. And damn, I am having so much fun for so little $. Part of the appeal is how little we spent for it. We're still kinda in shock actually at the smiles per miles over cost ratio...

May be slow on a straight line but a well setup FR-S on sticky tires will eat your E92 m3 in a tight circuit. Im 1.5 seconds faster @ harris hill road which is a tight circuit in my FR-S vs my E92 M3. Both cars have suspension , brakes and tires.

Quote:

Originally Posted by BlackJetE90

FRS + Innovate twin screw supercharger

This i just got to drive Robispecs supercharged FR-S around H2R in texas and man i was quite surprised how fast it was.

Initially I thought Cayman S. I don't think there is any debate that it's the more desirable car, and with good reason. However, I think I would choose a BRZ (over the FRS, hate the association that comes with the Scion badge). Reliability is in another class vs a used Cayman S since you'll have the warranty, and you can make the car truly yours with mods with the leftover cash.

If you do go the Cayman S route I won't blame you though. I would just make absolutely sure it's a clean example. A 3rd party PPI is absolutely necessary with a car like this, and make sure you're the one paying for it.

I drove a FR-S this weekend. What a fun little car. So easy to drive, whip around corners, etc. It's very low, and I'm sure I'd drop it further. The stock tires suck and there's not much power, but those are solvable problems. The FI solutions are hitting the market now and I'm sure 500hp will be available soon.

I really don't care about the Subaru vs Scion brand. I can't see it making that big a difference in resale and I don't want to pay a $5k premium for a trunk lid badge.

A 2009+ Cayman S will run me $45k+ around here...if I can find one. I'm not sure the Cayman will be 2x the fun. The FR-S wins in smiles per mile.

What is "Rms"? What other differences are worth noting for the model years?

I shopped for a pre-owned Cayman S for a while before picking up the M3. Loved the Cayman but just couldn't find "the one". Too bad the Cayman R are going for insane prices. That would be the ultimate Cayman.

RMS = rear main seal. Costly job to replace, even more so to repair if it all goes bad.

If buying Porsche from between the years the 996 to early 997 (Boxsters and Caymans included), I'm going to stick to Mezger engines aka the ones in 911 Turbos, GT2/3 ect...

Mezger engines are not immune to the RMS leaks. Even the turbos and GT's have their share of main seal failures. I have no idea what the Mezger/non-Mezger RMS ratios is but I've seen these happen.

I'd go FRS/BRZ. If fun/track is your intention than this spartan car is the way to go. Great drivers car and with the money you save, you could get a fully built 450hp turbo motor from Crawford Performance! Though, if you occasionally want to take your wife/GF out to dinner, then P-car.

As a cayman owner and pretty active member on the cayman forums i'll give my account. The RMS problems are much more common on the mezger engined cars than on the 987's. You see that problem rarely on the cayman platform. Rather, if you are going to track, first-gen caymans are known for oil starvation problems and anyone who runs r-comps or heavily track their car ends up modifying the oiling system. Most run with a deeper sump available from LN engineering, or an accusump system which cost ~1-2k installed depending on the route you decide to take. On a dedicated track car, you'd probably want to run a 2 quart sump and an accusump. These problems are resolved with these 2 mods and everyone does fine with them. Other than that, these caymans are really great out of the box. Also, very little has to be done to get the full potential out of them. With GT3 or TPC sway bars, GT3 or RSS front control arms (front maxes out at -0.8 degrees of camber and camber plates still won't get you much), a good set of tires, and some good fluid and pads and you're really ready to go. These cars really perform spectacularly with a good set of bars and some negative camber. The '09+ 987.2's alleviated the oiling problems with a dry-sump oiling system and do not need any modifications.

As for the maintenance everyone complains about, this has been the most reliable car i've owned. Sure, wear items like pads and rotors may cost more, but my maintenance history has not been bad AT ALL. In comparison, my friends with BMW's and other cars had way more reliability problems than i've had so far.

As a cayman owner and pretty active member on the cayman forums i'll give my account. The RMS problems are much more common on the mezger engined cars than on the 987's. You see that problem rarely on the cayman platform. .

I've been looking for a lighter toy/track car to complement my e93. I've somewhat narrowed it to new/CPO FR-S or a used Cayman S.

Pros of the cayman:
More power, more refinement, better balance

Pros of the FR-S:
Warranty, Toyota reliability and service costs, cheaper mods

Looks are pretty equivalent in my mind, both look great.

Thoughts?

My friend im in the same shoes as you...in fact thats how i found this article because it's hard to decide...however just to make your decesion a little bit easier watch this...this guy has owned both and now owns a brz and he tells his account..

You are correct, my confusion of facts. I have seen several IMS, not RMS failures on 6speedonine, rennlist, and planet-9. Even then so, they are they are extremely rare in the M97 in the first-gen caymans and have happened on very high mileage cars.